WSIRN: Julia Whelan Archives

Evvie Drake Starts Over

by Linda Holmes

In the debut novel from Pop Culture Happy Hour host Holmes, a grieving widow and a disgraced Major League pitcher start over after each suffers their own kind of tragedy. Evvie’s husband dies in a car accident, but the truth surrounding his death is painful for reasons her small town community can never know. Dean’s career took a nosedive when he inexplicably developed “the yips”—he’s unable to pitch for reasons that might be all in his head, but nobody can figure it out. Because Evvie needs the income a boarder would bring, and Dean needs a refuge, a mutual friend connects the two. Out of mutual kindness and witty banter, a friendship develops, and then something more … but starting over as a grown-up is complicated. A warm, witty, and satisfying summer read.

Daisy Jones & The Six

by Taylor Jenkins Reid

I was a little skeptical when I first picked this up: I mean, a tell-all “documentary” about a fictional 1970s band? It took Taylor Jenkins Reid about three pages to win me over, with her fast-moving storyline and characters so convincing I had to google again to make sure the band wasn’t really real. The plot revolves around Billy Dunne, the tortured, talented lead singer for the Six, and Daisy Jones, the beautiful, soulful girl with a troubled past who catapults the Six to fame when she begins singing—and writing—their songs. Daisy and Billy’s chemistry is electric, and fans can’t get enough of it. We know from the beginning that the story is about why the band broke up, and the reasons are both expected and hold a big surprise, unfurled in an engrossing story of sex, drugs, and rock ’n’ roll.

Beach Read

by Emily Henry

Don’t be fooled by the cheery cover; I loved this book, but it’s no rom-com. January is a 29-year-old romance writer who no longer believes in happily-ever-after. Demoralized and broke, she moves into the beach house she inherited when her father died, hoping to lick her wounds and finish her current manuscript. But then, in a cruel twist of fate, she discovers her neighbor is the beloved literary fiction writer Augustus Everett, her college rival (and crush), whom she was hoping to never see again. It turns out Gus has troubles of his own, and so the two make a bet to get their writing back on track: January will try her hand at the “bleak literary fiction” that Gus writes, and Gus will write a romance novel. A warm and delightfully meta take on love, writing, and second chances.

Thank You for Listening

by Julia Whelan

Two audiobook narrators find love in this meta take on contemporary publishing. Romance enthusiasts always roll their eyes when critical readers mock the “predictability” of the genre. In her long-anticipated sophomore novel, top-tier narrator Whelan (Educated, The Great Alone, and 2022’s Book Lovers) has a ball skewering the tired objections of romance skeptics as she takes us deep into the world of the field she knows so well. Actress-turned-narrator Sewanee is still recovering from a terrible accident that scarred her inside and out when she’s cast alongside the sexy and secretive Brock McKnight in a coveted project. Whelan clearly enjoys playing with the genre’s familiar tropes—snowed in, just one night, mistaken identity. With wittily named chapter titles (don’t miss them!) and great supporting characters, this sometimes steamy romance shows our heroine forgiving herself and finding true love. Open door. For fans of Emily Henry’s Beach Read and Linda Holmes’s Evvie Drake Starts Over.

Part of Your World

by Abby Jimenez

What does a city doctor have in common with a small town carpenter? Alexis is not expecting more than one night with Daniel but their chemistry is undeniable. The more time she spends in Daniel’s town, the more she learns what she wants in life but it’s not without cost. Daniel doesn’t belong in her world but she’s not sure she can give him up either. Abby Jimenez’s trademark sense of humor helps balance the moving exploration of intimate partner violence, making for one heartwarming read. I loved Julia Whelan and Zachary Webber’s dual narration.

Birds of California

by Katie Cotugno

Julia Whelan calls Katie Cotugno a YA writer who she "always felt was much better than she was getting credit for." Her newest release, which Julia narrates, is about two child actors who played brother and sister on a show. Five years later, one of them has recently experienced a public meltdown and has been in self-imposed exile since. But a reunion of that old show is brewing, and she has to agree to participate if it is to move forward, and so they send in the guy who played her brother to talk her into it ... and romance ensues. Julia says that not only is the story fun, with characters you feel compelled to root for, but Katie's wizardry with character and dialogue elevates the reading experience.

The Latecomer

by Jean Hanff Korelitz

This is the decades-long story of a wealthy Brooklyn family and their triplets—the smart one, the weird one, and the girl—conceived with the help of IVF. For a bevy of reasons this family never quite gelled, and the siblings carry not a trace of affection for each other. Everything changes when the triplets reach college age, and their mother, yearning for some semblance of familial love, decides to thaw the fourth and only remaining embryo and have another child. The arrival of that child—the latecomer—blows up the whole family. An unexpected bonus was the thread of modern art that runs through the book: I googled so many artists and works along the way. Whispersync narration available.

Wolf Hall

by Hilary Mantel

I've been meaning to read this modern classic and 2009 Booker Prize winner for AGES: it's been often praised as a believable and meticulously researched novelization of Tudor England in the Cromwell era. Fall felt like a good time to finally jump in; at my friend Mel's urging, I listened to the audiobook narrated by Ben Miles. This is a tale both of Henry VIII's court and of human nature; Wolf Hall, the first in a trilogy, covers the era when the king has determined to marry Anne Boleyn but is still married to Katherine of Aragon, and is pressuring everyone in his circle to make his new marriage possible. I had to mind every word, glance, raised eyebrow, and stiffened shoulder to track who was currently in the king's graces and whose very life was in peril. This was exquisitely done and I'm so glad I finally read it.

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